Last week I showed you all how to roast up whole beets without foil, and today I’m showing an easy weeknight, (or any night) salad recipe that incorporates those roasted beets, that you hopefully roasted. 😉
This salad is vegan, whole-30 approved and paleo, so for those of you on any of those diets, feel free to dig in.
Salads are such a simple, no-fuss way to incorporate more greens into your diet. Salads are awesome because they take no time to assemble, you can add just about anything to them to make them more nutritious, such as roasted beets, nuts, sweet potatoes, hemp seeds, pumpkins seeds, sunflower seeds, the list goes on and on. These simple nutritious additions can turn a Plain-Jane salad into a gourmet salad. I added some roasted sweet potato, toasted almonds and aged cheddar to a simple kale salad, and it turned this salad into a tasty and filling lunch. Yum, and so healthy to boot!
The balsamic vinaigrette for this salad was created by my daughter Zoe! GO ZOE! It consists of 5 simple pantry ingredients; balsamic vinegar, extra-virgin olive oil, clove of garlic and a bit of salt and pepper, and takes under 2 minutes to whip up. AWESOME! Trust me, this vinaigrette beats the pants off of any store-bought variety! Also, making your own vinaigrette is way less expensive than the store-bought variety, is fresher, and the best part is that you know exactly what goes into it.
To make this salad an easy weeknight salad, you’ll want to roast up the beets ahead of time. Roasting up beets takes about an hour, so I usually roast mine on a Sunday, or on a slow weeknight when I’m home hanging out. Once roasted, beets will keep refrigerated for up to a week. Pretty cool! You can store them whole or sliced. I store mine whole in a glass container with a lid, and slice off just what I need for whatever I’m making, like this salad! I also love pairing roasted beets with some avocado for a post-workout snack, or with some fried or scrambled eggs.
This salad is totally kid approved and LOVED by Zoe. I will be honest, Eli is getting used to it, and said the beets tasted pretty good, (he’s never been a fan of beets) but like the way they tasted in this salad paired with the vinaigrette. He did finish his salad on both occasions though, so that’s always a good start!
The almonds are toasted in olive oil and then finihed off with sea salt. Delish! They really add a nice crunch texture and flavor to the salad.
roasted beet and arugula salad with toasted almonds:
vinaigrette recipe yields enough to lightly dress a salad for four
Serves: 4
for the dressing:
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small garlic clove, minced
- 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt – the amount of salt you add is to taste
- freshly ground pepper to taste
for the salad:
- 1/3 cup raw almonds with skins, coarsely chopped
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- fine sea salt
- arugula – the amount you use will depend on the crowd you’re serving
- 1 to 2 roasted beets, cut into wedges
First, if you haven’t roasted your beets, then you can check out my post on how to roast whole beets without foil.
Roasting up beets will take about an hour, so I usually recommend roasting your beets ahead of time. I usually roast mine on a Sunday, or on a slow weeknight when I’m home hanging out.
Once roasted, beets will keep refrigerated for up to a week. You can store them whole or sliced. I store them whole in a glass container with a lid, and slice off just what I need for whatever I’m making.
Next, let’s toast up those almonds. You can toast up the almonds ahead to time to save a step. Just store them in covered container till you’re ready to use them.
Coarsely chop the almonds.
Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to a medium-sized skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the chopped almonds to the skillet and stir frequently until golden brown in spots, about 2-3 minutes.
Transfer almonds to a paper towel lined plate to get the grease off. Sprinkle the almonds with some fine sea salt. Set them aside to cool. 
In a small bowl or small glass jar with a lid, (I used a recycled glass jelly jar) add in 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, 3 tablespoons olive oil, minced garlic, sea salt and freshly ground pepper.
Whisk until emulsified, or put the lid on a jar and shake the ingredients until emulsified.
Once the dressing is mixed, give it a taste and adjust the seasonings.
Tasting tip: For the most accurate idea of what the dressing will taste like on your salad, dip a leaf into the dressing, shake off the excess, and give it a try.
Put a bunch of arugula into a large salad bowl, add in the roasted beet wedges, slightly drizzle vinaigrette over the arugula and beets, and toss gently to combine. 
Add in the toasted almonds, and toss to combine. 
Plate it up and enjoy! I love this salad for lunch paired with a fried egg cooked in coconut oil. Delish!
Here’s another simple weeknight arugula salad that can be made in under 10 minutes and is kid approved and loved!
Oh and I can’t forget to give you the link to our favorite kale salad ever! This kale salad gets made weekly, if not more in my house, and has turned kale haters into kale lovers. It’s that good, and I haven’t found another kale salad that I like as much as this one. It’s also totally KID APPROVED and LOVED! 
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon coarse sea salt - the amount of salt you add is to taste
- freshly ground pepper to taste
- ⅓ cup raw almonds with skins, coarsely chopped
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- fine sea salt
- arugula - the amount you use will depend on the crowd you're serving
- 1 to 2 roasted beets, cut into wedges
- First, if you haven't roasted your beets, then you can check out my post on how to roast whole beets without foil. Roasting up beets will take about an hour, so I usually recommend roasting your beets ahead of time. I usually roast mine on a Sunday, or on a slow weeknight when I'm home hanging out. Once roasted, beets will keep refrigerated for up to a week. You can store them whole or sliced. I store them whole in a glass container with a lid, and slice off just what I need for whatever I’m making.
- Next, let's toast up those almonds. You can toast up the almonds ahead to time to save a step. Just store them in covered container till you’re ready to use them.
- Coarsely chop the almonds.
- Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to a medium-sized skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the chopped almonds to the skillet and stir frequently until golden brown in spots, about 2-3 minutes. Transfer almonds to a paper towel lined plate to get the grease off. Sprinkle the almonds with some fine sea salt. Set them aside to cool.
- In a small bowl or small glass jar with a lid, (I used a recycled glass jelly jar) add in 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, 3 tablespoons olive oil, minced garlic, sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Whisk until emulsified, or put the lid on a jar and shake the ingredients until emulsified.
- Once the dressing is mixed, give it a taste and adjust the seasonings. Tasting tip: For the most accurate idea of what the dressing will taste like on your salad, dip a leaf into the dressing, shake off the excess, and give it a try.
- Put a bunch of arugula into a large salad bowl, add in the roasted beet wedges, slightly drizzle vinaigrette over the arugula and beets, and toss gently to combine.
- Add in the toasted almonds, and toss to combine.
- Plate it up and enjoy!
Go Zoe! The dressing is delicious!
Awwww.. thanks Michelle 🙂